You Need Just Six Moves And Two Dumbbells For A Quick Sweat

Short on time very much describes my week (life is busy for a fitness writer during Black Friday). But I still want to keep active and keep my body moving, so I returned to a session I first used when I was tapering ahead of my first marathon.

It’s from Elise Young, a NCSF and CFSC certified trainer and former college basketball player, and all I needed were a pair of dumbbells.

I did this one at my gym so I could easily change the weight between each movement, but if you don’t have a gym membership a set of adjustable dumbbells will do the trick. As luck would have it, there’s a Black Friday/Cyber Monday discount on the pair which tops Coach’s selection of the best dumbbells.

I alternated between light and medium dumbbells (8-14kg), using the heavier set for movements such as the squat press and lunge press and lighter for my weaker exercises like the renegade row with push-up. Young says to focus on good form for this routine, so by going down in weight I found this much easier to do.

Young doesn’t provide rest periods, but I took 15 seconds of rest between each movement and 30 seconds after each set.

I found the best thing about this workout was how it worked my entire body in a relatively short space of time. By the time I was halfway through set three my muscles had that tired achy feeling that I was hoping to achieve.

If you’re looking for more full-body workouts, Coach has plenty to offer. If time is against you, try this 20-minute full-body workout. This full-body dumbbell workout is a great option for building muscle, while those with plenty of experience in the weights room may like this barbell full-body workout.